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Thursday, December 30, 2010

I had hoped to post this on December 28th, 2010. That would've been my first anniversary of the day I became an author. Or shall I qualify that to a writer? (A writer is defined as one who writes. An author is defined as one that originates or creates). Back in the beginning of this writing journey I was hopelessly only a struggling writer. It is long story but I will try to recap it for you in bullets.

During the summer of 2009, I not only read a novel, but I finished a novel. A long one too. The weirdness in that is, with one exception I had never finished a work of fiction in my life. As a kid growing up reading was a form of personal torture. Not for my sister - she would have her face in a book day in and day out. For me it was very near to the bottom of the list of things to do; right alongside eating cockroaches I think.

I will not tell you right now what book it was for to mislead you, however suffice it to say it was not a book I would have chosen for myself. It was part of my job. I was working in a library as the program coordinator. So begrudgingly I began the book. Soon I was entranced and by the end of September I had read all of the books in the series. That may not seem like a big deal but it was a total of 2560 pages of written word. That clearly would beat the total number pages read in my lifetime. In three months!

By the time November rolled around I had reread the entire series two-and-a-half times. However due to my strong Christian beliefs I decided if this was a new past time it needs to be one that honors the Lord. So I hit the shelves of my library and found some Christian authors. So, along with rereading the original series I also read ten Christian fictions titles. AND YES my husband was suddenly concerned about me.

Beginning around the end of October and the beginning of November I began to get images rolling around my head. They were not people or places I knew or had read about - they were new. At first I tried to ignore them but it was nearly impossible to do so. The best way to describe it would be to say "someone" put a dvd in my head and hit play and I did not have access to the remote. The "movie" would play only when I was awake but it seemed to have no manners for pausing while I was busy with other things. After the first one finished I heaved a sigh of relief and proceeded to get back to life. Only to discover a new "dvd" was put in. They generally lasted about one to one-and-a-half weeks in my head.

By the time movie number three began I was stressed out. My future seemed bleak with a tight fitting white coat and a lot of strangers in my head. It is funny in hindsight to see how long we wait to call in the Calvary. I finally cried out to God and asked for His help. His answer was not audible, but it was recognizable. He simply said the stories need to be told. Frankly that was the first time the word story had ever entered my mind.

That week (mid-December) was a monumental one for me. God and I wrestled. He wanted me to write them down and I said 'find someone else'. He said I want you to write them down and I said 'you must be crazy'. Need I say anymore?

Finally, I laid out a fleece. (Shamefully I have always been a Gideon and a doubting Thomas.) Lord, there are thousands of books lining bookstore shelves and libraries. That doesn't take into account the probably thousands upon thousands of wanna-be authors. Why me? If you want me to do this there needs to be something else to it. I am not asking to be the best or to be famous I just want to be different. God is good ... all the time! He gave me a song.

God laid out a writing concept for me - it one that is relatively unfamiliar in the publishing world so I do not know if it will last, but in every single story I have a character who is inspired to take a deeper step in their faith walk by a song. I am very excited about this. Check out my soundtrack page for more information.

By this time - Christmas 2009 - my head was well into story #3. However, I decided to start there as it was the first one with a song. So that became manuscript #1. Check out my other projects to see more about that.

To this date, more than a year later, the "dvds" continue to play in my head, but with each one God gives me fewer and fewer details, allowing me to become more author (creator) than writer.

I am excited to see where this adventure leads me. It may never be publication in the formal sense, but I am okay with that. From January 2010, dragged into a new life with a stern face and fisted hands I obeyed the call of my Author and Creator. Now as I embark on January 2011 I am a willing and excited participant.